Authorities reviewing actions during LAX terminal shooting

By CNN Staff

Updated 10:03 PM ET, Sat November 16, 2013

Photos: Gunfire at LAX28 photos

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Transportation Security Administration Officer Gerardo Hernandez, 39, was killed in a shooting at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, November 1. Paul Ciancia, 23, armed with what police say was an assault rifle and carrying materials expressing anti-government sentiment, opened fire at LAX Terminal 3, killing Hernandez before being chased down. Ciancia has been charged with the murder of a federal officer and commission of violence at an international airport.

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Photos: Gunfire at LAX28 photos

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – A passenger embraces a TSA screener at Los Angeles International Airport's Terminal 3 after it was reopened on Saturday, November 2 following a shooting. Four other people are recovering from injuries in the shooting.

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Injured traveler Bruce Reith, from Munich, Germany, is helped by two Los Angeles Airport Police officers as he makes his way on crutches to Terminal 3 for departure a day after injuring himself while escaping the shooting.

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Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Workers tear down a temporary partition after Terminal 3 was reopened on November 2, a day after a shooting at LAX.

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Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – A Los Angeles Airport Police officer stands in front of Terminal 3 security screeners after law enforcement officials completed their investigation and prepare to reopen the terminal at LAX on November 2.

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – This photo, from Terminal 3, shows what appears to be a weapon on the ground. Police said a man "pulled an assault rifle out of a bag and began to open fire" Friday, killing one person and injuring others before being shot and taken into custody.

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Photos: Gunfire at LAX28 photos

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Law enforcement officers gather in Terminal 3 near the scene of the shooting.

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Passengers evacuate the airport after the incident, which airport officials said began about 9:30 a.m. The gunfire and the airport's announcement of the incident provoked chaos among travelers, passengers said.

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Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – People hide inside a bathroom stall at the airport after the gunshots were reported.

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Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – Thousands of travelers were delayed after the incident closed the airport for hours.

Fatal shooting at Los Angeles airport – First responders and emergency vehicles arrive at the airport.

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Story highlights

AP is reporting that a TSA officer killed during a shooting at LAX lay bleeding for 33 minutes

Authorities investigating the shooting did not respond directly to the report

Officials release joint statement saying various statements have been made, some untrue

Authorities investigating a shooting at Los Angeles International Airport asked for patience Saturday as they piece together details of the rampage that left a Transportation Security Administration officer dead.

The statement released jointly by federal and local authorities came one day after The Associated Press, citing two unnamed law enforcement officials, reported the slain TSA officer lay bleeding for 33 minutes because police had not declared the terminal safe for paramedics to enter.

Authorities have charged Paul Ciancia, 29, in the death of TSA officer Gerardo Hernandez, who was shot in the chest and abdomen during the November 1 shooting at Terminal 3.

The joint statement did not directly address the AP report, but it defended the actions of authorities that day.

"Command officers and airport administrators were faced with a wide range of important objectives, including conducting a complete search to rule out additional gunmen or explosives, identifying and treating all injured victims, and coordinating the needs of the thousands of arriving and departing travelers that were impacted by the incident," the statement said.

Federal and local authorities will offer no further comment beyond the statement while the investigation is ongoing, said LAPD spokeswoman Sally Madera.

The AP reported that while it was unknown when Hernandez died, officials were examining whether paramedics, who were reportedly held 150 yards away from the terminal by police, could have gone in earlier.

"Various statements have been made regarding the incident, some of which are untrue and others that merit serious consideration by our respective agencies," the Saturday statement said.

"Numerous actions are underway relative to this incident and the ensuing response."

According to the joint statement, authorities are conducting a federal criminal investigation and an officer-involved shooting investigation. An after-action work group is also analyzing all aspects of the "multidiscipline response."

Key findings of the investigations will be released when they are completed, it said.

Hernandez, 39, was the first TSA officer killed in the line of duty in the agency's 12-year-history.

According to authorities, Ciancia walked up to the TSA checkpoint where Hernandez was working and opened fire, shooting him "at point-blank range," according to a court document.

Ciancia then went up an escalator toward the security checkpoint, but returned to shoot Hernandez again after apparently seeing the officer move, the document said.

The rampage came to an end when authorities shot and wounded Ciancia, who has been charged with the murder of a federal officer and commission of violence at an international airport.